Strange Codes

Arthur Lipsett’s Strange Codes is the legendary found-footage filmmaker’s first and only independent film, made after his departure from the National Film Board of Canada. In a rented house in Toronto, Lipsett stages a series of mysterious rituals, appearing onscreen in the guise of various characters, among them, an archeologist, a soldier, a scientist, a magician, and the Monkey King of the Peking opera. Dense with enigmatic gestures and private allusions, Strange Codes operates, in Lipsett’s words, “at the midway points between the primitive, ritualized world and the world of logic and science.”

First pressing, limited edition of 1000

1975 / 23 minutes / black and white / stereo / 1.37:1AR

SPECIAL FEATURES

• Newly restored 5K digital master from the film’s surviving elements

• Audio commentary and liner notes by media artist and writer Brett Kashmere

• 38 minutes of out-takes from the film

• Strange Codes: A Breakdown, a shot analysis of the film by film preservationist Stephen Broomer

• Readings from the Instruction Box: Arthur Lipsett on the Secret Museum, a visit with Arthur Lipsett, who reflects on the natural collage of the universe